How Not to Waste Food: Eat Leftovers, Compost, Share with Dogs

Today’s Stream of Consciousness prompt was: “food”

If I hadn’t written about my efforts to be a vegetarian just a few days ago, I would have written about that…..

Do you know how much food is wasted in the US? A lot!

My mother used to say, “We don’t throw away food.” She grew up in the depression and didn’t throw away much. But sometime, when it has mold on it, you do need to throw it away, unless of course you can compost it. We keep our compost in the freezer until it piles up enough to carry it out to the composter.

Having dogs also helps us not to waste food. And we eat a lot of leftovers. Sometime we can make a whole meal of leftovers, two meals even. A thin friend of mine told me that she felt like when she ate too much, it was wasting food, so it’s the same as throwing it away. I don’t know. But it got me thinking about how maybe I don’t need to eat something just to keep it from going to waste when I’ve already had enough. But I still don’t like to throw it away if it’s usable, meaning eatable.

My husband’s dogs, who are now my dogs, my step dogs, will eat just about anything, including kale, broccoli, carrots, apples and bananas. My little mutt has started to eat some of those things, too, since her step sisters seem to enjoy their raw veggies so much. But when we toss her the kale, or a piece of raw carrot, she mouths it and then looks at us like, what is this? This is not food.

Yet, for humans, it is food, unlike things like potato chips and candy – food like products, right? Except that last night, I had some potato chips for the first time in a very long time, and they were good, sort of, not wholesome, yeah, they didn’t taste like food. Okay, so I won’t do that again for a very long time. I hope. Because it’s true what they say about weight gain and getting older. It’s not mandatory to gain weight as we age, but it does seem to be a trend. And then there are those people who get thinner as they get older.

But back to food. I’d really like to eat mostly what God made, through nature, for us to eat to be healthy. We are blessed and lucky to have so many choices in the modern world. But I do like dark chocolate, and that is not made by God/nature. Cocoa beans are though. I don’t recall ever having a cocoa bean. I think it’s about time. Because beans are good for you. And I want to eat food that’s good for me. I want to eat to live, not live to eat.

If you’d like to join in the banquet of Saturday’s Stream of Consciousness, visit:

http://lindaghill.com/2016/02/26/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-feb-2716/

Here are the rules:

1. Your post must be stream of consciousness writing, meaning no editing, (typos can be fixed) and minimal planning on what you’re going to write.

2. Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be. One sentence – one thousand words. Fact, fiction, poetry – it doesn’t matter. Just let the words carry you along until you’re ready to stop.

3. There will be a prompt every week. I will post the prompt here on my blog on Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a subject. For instance, I will not say “Write about dogs”; the prompt will be more like, “Make your first sentence a question,” “Begin with the word ‘The’,” or simply a single word to get your started.

4. Ping back! It’s important, so that I and other people can come and read your post! For example, in your post you can write “This post is part of SoCS:” and then copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into yours.  Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top.

5. Read at least one other person’s blog who has linked back their post. Even better, read everyone’s! If you’re the first person to link back, you can check back later, or go to the previous week, by following my category, “Stream of Consciousness Saturday,” which you’ll find right below the “Like” button on my post.

6. Copy and paste the rules (if you’d like to) in your post. The more people who join in, the more new bloggers you’ll meet and the bigger your community will get!

7. As a suggestion, tag your post “SoCS” and/or “#SoCS” for more exposure and more views.

8. Have fun!

The Eye of the Red Snapper

Lent – the forty days between Mardi Gras and, Easter – is the only time, so far, I’ve been able to be a true vegetarian. Not vegan (I still eat cheese – still working on that) but vegetarian – no beef, no pork (the easy part for me) and no chicken or fish (the harder part.)

My husband respects my goals on this so much, that he voluntarily doesn’t eat “red meat” at home and doesn’t eat much meat in my presence, besides chicken and fish. A few weeks before lent, he asked me if I minded if he brought home some red snapper someone at work had offered him. Since I’ve occasionally indulged in seafood (except during lent) I said okay. As a tomboyish youth, I took pride in cleaning fish myself, but this time, I was happy to leave that job up to my husband. The night being cold, he scaled the fish and cut off the heads in the kitchen. The smell was not pleasant.

Then I saw it – The eye of the red snapper, staring at me, from my own kitchen sink. The eye’s blank look confirmed that it was dead. But it was still shiny. The fish had been frozen until it thawed in my sink. Could the eye possibly still see me?

I think I’m going to get better at this vegetarian thing. It’s about time. I’ve been working on it for about 40 years. Not eating cows and pigs has been easy. And after watching enough videos of what happens to baby chicks on factory farms….. well… I think I’m done with chicken. Now the eye of the red snapper has given me an extra push toward being a true vegetarian. Even though the taste of its well prepared flesh was flaky and mild, I didn’t enjoy it as much as I would have, if I had not seen the eye.

On the eve of lent, during my church’s annual Shrove (aka Fat) Tuesday oyster roast, I only ate three oysters – well done and dry, not slurpy. Oysters don’t have eyes, but I wonder: Are they still alive when the heat of the roasting fire forces their shells open?

Sometimes I wish I didn’t think about such things.

Now, for a somewhat humorous, yet honest, look at this issue:

 

It’s about progress, not perfection.

(The red snapper image is by “Paulk” via Wikimedia Commons)

 

No Beef, No Turkey, But I’d Love Some Pumpkin Pie!

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“Beef.” I don’t miss it. Not one bit. I don’t miss pork either. I stopped eating those things in my early twenties. Maybe I was twenty. If so, I’m coming up on being beef and pork free for 40 years!

I’m not comfortable with today’s stream of consciousness post being “beef.” It does give me an opportunity to share, to encourage, movement toward vegetarianism. But I don’t want people to think I’m being judgmental. I don’t want to force my eating habits on anyone, anymore than I want to force my religious beliefs. But they are mine, and this is my blog, and this is my stream of consciousness post on “beef.”

I have to be honest. I’m not a perfect vegetarian. I still eat fish. Not often, but sometimes I get tired of nuts as my main protein source. I’ve gotten way better at abstaining from chicken. And during lent, I am able to be a strict vegetarian, moving toward being vegan on some days. In case you don’t know, a vegan is someone who does not consume any animal products at all. No eggs, no cheese, no leather goods. I know that it’s quite possible to do. But I haven’t gotten there yet on a consistent basis.

The chicken was a challenge for years, especially barbecued chicken, when the sauce gets a little burnt….okay lets step away from that. It’s also a challenge when there’s a really good casserole with just a little chicken in it. Guess I might need to refresh my memory with some videos about what happens to chickens on factory farms, especially the little baby boy chicks discarded in heaps, like pieces of trash and not living things. But I don’t have to watch the videos. I have a good imagination. I can remember.

Here’s a link that seems to just have photos and words, a little easier than the videos:

http://www.aspca.org/fight-cruelty/farm-animal-cruelty

If you’re on the fence, the videos help. But they are hard to watch. Interestingly, I never had that much trouble not eating cows and pigs. Because lets be honest, beef comes from cows, and pork comes from pigs.

It all started in the late 70’s, in college, when I read an article by a hunter who wrote that anyone who opposes hunting and eats meat is a hypocrite. I thought about it. And then quit. I am aware that animals hunted and killed quickly after living a natural life have it much better than animals on factory farms. But most of us have enough other options available to us, that neither is necessary.

I’m thankful that there will be plenty of alternatives to turkey this Thanksgiving. Like pumpkin pie. Mmmmm!

Today’s Stream of Consciousness post prompt was the word, “beef.”

If you’d like to jump into the stream, start here:

http://lindaghill.com/2015/10/23/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-oct-2315/

Here are the rules:

1. Your post must be stream of consciousness writing, meaning no editing, (typos can be fixed) and minimal planning on what you’re going to write.

2. Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be. One sentence – one thousand words. Fact, fiction, poetry – it doesn’t matter. Just let the words carry you along until you’re ready to stop.

3. There will be a prompt every week. I will post the prompt here on my blog on Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a subject. For instance, I will not say “Write about dogs”; the prompt will be more like, “Make your first sentence a question,” “Begin with the word ‘The’,” or simply a single word to get your started.

4. Ping back! It’s important, so that I and other people can come and read your post! For example, in your post you can write “This post is part of SoCS:” and then copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into yours.  Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top.

5. Read at least one other person’s blog who has linked back their post. Even better, read everyone’s! If you’re the first person to link back, you can check back later, or go to the previous week, by following my category, “Stream of Consciousness Saturday,” which you’ll find right below the “Like” button on my post.

6. Copy and paste the rules (if you’d like to) in your post. The more people who join in, the more new bloggers you’ll meet and the bigger your community will get!

7. As a suggestion, tag your post “SoCS” and/or “#SoCS” for more exposure and more views.

8. Have fun!

What Would Jesus Eat?

Working on last week’s post about being a true vegetarian for lent, I  came across this book, What Would Jesus Eat?

http://www.amazon.com/What-Would-Jesus-Eat-Ultimate/dp/0785273190

I confess I’ve only read summaries so far. But apparently, Jesus ate mostly bread and fish. He probably ate some grapes, dates, olives and figs. He probably didn’t eat much beef, and didn’t eat pork at all. I don’t think Jesus ate chocolate, but that might need some research.

If Jesus lived today, in the flesh, I think he’d be a vegetarian, mostly. I’m pretty sure Saint Francis would be a vegetarian. They might have accepted donations of meat, but then they might have given those away.

I really enjoyed some grilled tofu and veggies sprinkled with peanuts for lunch yesterday. I’m not missing chicken at all.

Lent: Is it Okay to Cheat on Sundays?

It’s about halfway through the 40 days of lent. As in years past, I’ve been cleaning up my vegetarian plate for lent. I’m not vegan, though I do have vegan days. I thought I was having one  last week until I remembered there was butter and parmesan cheese on that garlic bread. No body’s perfect.

I stopped eating meat in the late 70’s. Here’s how it happened. Since then, it’s been easy for me to abstain from eating mammals. It’s been harder to give up eating fish and chicken, except during the season of lent.  During lent, I’m a strict true vegetarian.

A couple weeks ago, one of the regularly visiting priests ministering to my little Episcopal church told me that Sundays don’t count in lent.

What?

He said there were more than 40 days between Ash Wednesday and Easter and that’s how Sundays get to be free days, though I think he said, “feast days.”

I counted the days on the calendar, and sure enough, there are 46 days from Ash Wednesday to Easter!

Why did I not know this? Or did I hear it and just not pay attention?

Going 40 days in a row, (now 46) straight through to Easter as a true vegetarian works for me. It brings me closer to my goal to not contribute to the horrors of factory farming, because after lent, I eat way less chicken. It’s just possible that I’m done with chicken for good.

(Fish is another matter. I’m not going there yet.)

What I’ve learned about myself, and I think this applies to most people with addictive personalities, is that it’s easier for me to abstain all together, than to indulge occasionally. I learned this the hard way with cigarettes. And even though I’m not an alcoholic, it’s easier for me to abstain than to drink alcohol occasionally. I can’t say I’ll never drink again. Maybe I’ll have a glass of wine on my 80th birthday. For now, I’m comfortable staying sober. But for some people, once it too many and a thousand’s never enough. For some people, like alcoholics, it’s not worth the risk.

I quit drinking twenty something years ago, when I got serious about recovery from compulsive overeating and stopped consuming empty calories. I stopped eating refined sugar for about a year. At that time, total abstinence from sweets was easier than moderation. Now I indulge in sweets occasionally, especially dark chocolate, but I know it’s a slippery slope, and I need to be mindful.

For lent, I’m sticking to my tradition of being a true vegetarian, including Sundays, all the way ’til Easter.  I hope this will help me really be done with eating chicken. And I’m not going fishing for seafood. There are plenty of other options lower on the food chain.

Like dark chocolate.

We all have our own values and goals. Some are easier than others. Some we struggle with. What helps you be consistent? Or are you fine with the occasional indulgence?

Confesssions of an Imperfect Vegetarian

Ever since 1970, when I heard Melanie Safka sing, “I don’t eat animals, cause I love em you see. I don’t eat animals, and they don’t eat me,” I’ve wanted to be a vegetarian.

I got good at it  when I was in college, after reading an article by a hunter challenging people who are against hunting to stop eating meat. I did better after reading quotes by Isaac Bashevis Singer comparing factory farms to Nazi concentration camps, a realistic comparison considering the severity of misery inflicted. Watching videos of baby chicks being de-beaked or ground up alive, always works for a while. I’ve actually gotten better over the years at not eating chicken.

For almost 30 years, I’ve had no problem abstaining from mammal flesh, feeling a kinship with animals who feed their babies with milk from their bodies, like I did. But I’ve struggled with fish and chicken. Most of the time, I’ve been imperfect in my quest.

Except for Lent. During Lent,  the 40 days that start with Ash Wednesday and finish up with Easter, I am stronger.  For 40 days, I  know I can do what my spirit tells me is right for me. I can be an honest vegetarian-no chicken and no fish. During Lent, I have the strength to stretch myself, with God’s help, to have more days of being vegan-no animal products at all.  With so many alternatives available these days, it’s not too much of a sacrifice considering what Jesus did for us. So, I approach Lent with a sense of confidence that grows stronger each year.

Lent doesn’t have to be about giving something up. It can be about adding something good to your life. Like singing more.

At the Church of the Good Shepherd, we are working on a song for lent called: “You who dwell in the shelter of the Lord.” It’s about God saying, “I will raise you up on eagle’s wings,bear you on the breath of dawn, make you shine like the sun, and hold you in the palm of my hand.”  It gives my soul goose bumps.  This is what I joined  choir for: that feeling of accomplishment when you start to “get” a song you love- when it starts to come together with the voices of friends.  It’s a natural high, a power that comes from divine love.

So this year, I will add daily singing to my Lenten practice. It’s good for the soul. I’ll sing for God and for Jesus and for the animals. Cause I love ’em you see.